The Stranger Under the Apple Tree
by VolpeSkyFire28
Summary: After six long years, Ylisse's most prized tactician returns to the halidom, a place he had previously thought to forever be his home. Though upon arriving to Ylisstol, he finds himself unable to make it past the Royal Garden before wanting to run away once more. Yet who finds him is not the Prince of years past but a Princess of a new future. Prelude to FE:A AU. Yaoi.
1. Chapter 1

**Afternoon, Ylissians! This is my first fanfiction so please watch over me. *bows* I am writing purely for my own enjoyment and hopefully I don't offend anyone in the process. Anyway, this is the ORIGINAL timeline AU meaning this is before the game even takes place. This isn't the Future Past nor the Present. It's before even then. I put AU because there are some(alot) of things that aren't in line with the game but since the Original Timeline wasn't even specified. I assume I can do whatever I want? Anyway word of warning this is Yaoi. You know? Boyxboy? Guyxguy? Whatever floats your boat? Ahahaha now I've chased away half of you. What a great start. Anyway I hope you secret yaoi fans enjoy this ^^. Rated M for later chaps. -Volpe**

A lazy summer breeze flows through the castle grounds, caressing the tall green grass bending in the wind and chasing out playfully any dandelion fluff in the soft gentle pastures. The sunlight is soft and warm, coaxing out the rabbit to play and the deer to frolic in its embracing hold and enjoy its bright nature. The rays touch everything in their path, breathing life into the flowers once frozen by the cold of the night and the harshness of the moon. Everywhere there is light and warmth... especially for a sleeping figure under an apple tree.

The leather-bound book lies open still, the wind laughing and playing with the pages, aimlessly turning them back and forth. Both of the albino's hands still grip the edges of the book as though even in sleep he remains learning and eternally in the act of studying. Though many _could_ argue that the tactician never slept, always bent over books, scrutinizing every page for the best move in hopes of saving one more comrade or keep his Exalt safe. The leaves shade him from the sun who stubbornly trickles down between the foliage and grazes the soft white hair. He sleeps soundly with a soft smile still engraved on his face, giving him a rare peaceful expression for now he seldom smiled. A hard and anxious look constantly brewed on his face as though Death was looming over him with scythe in hand.

Curious of the figure slumbering under _her_ favorite tree, the princess creeps closer to him, waddling up slowly while crouched on the floor. She cocks her head to the side which immediately causes her crown to fall in the same direction and her bangs get into her eyes, covering her vision. Shaking her hair back into place, she peers at him, eyes blinking in puzzlement. "Who are you and why are you sleeping under my tree?" When the sleeping form simply turns his head to the other side and sighs softly, continuing to dream, she frowns slightly and waddles closer, daring to approach him. "Mister!" She calls out softly still not sure if she should wake the man. He was dressed in a funny purple cloak and his hair was so unnaturally white. She notes how the book lying open in his lap is covered in hastily scribbled notes and notations. There are also loose sheets of paper tucked in between the pages and one trapped beneath his hand, flapping to spirit away, was a detailed sketch of... her father? Maybe he was a spy! Blinking up at him again, she finds that he still has yet to awaken so she braves closer.

Her indigo eyes chance upon his fair hand and her eyes widen at the distinct dark tattoo on the hand. Without thinking she delicately picks up his hand and traces the lines with her tiny finger. She had seen this violet mark before! In a book? In a painting? But the mark was supposed to be alarming and somewhere in the back of her mind she knew it had a connection with death. When she looks back up she finds the man awake and blinking back innocently. Lucina squeaks and tumbles back in her haste to get away which causes the stranger to giggle softly. "Who are you and why are you under my tree!" She calls a bit more impatiently as she flails around, trying to keep her dress from fluttering up and attempting to act braver than she actually felt.

The tactician fails to cover his mirth behind his hand as he sits up a bit, closing the book out of habit without sparing it a second glance. "Ah, my name is Robin. I'm a good friend of your Father. But you probably haven't seen me because I've been away." He smiles a bit ruefully, grinning sheepishly. "Is this really your tree? I love it so much. It's quite helpful when I study because it allows me to relax. Quite comforting, don't you think?" His dark brown eyes turn into smiling crescents as he gazes at the small princess whose bottom lip comes out in a pout. _It was her tree. What was he doing claiming something so precious to her? This was where Daddy and her always had their picnics. This was his favorite tree too but that was a secret only the two of them shared._

However Lucina tilts her head to the side in more confusion, thinking hard to see how this stranger could have ever happened upon this apple tree. It was the only one in the castle, not to mention how he had even gotten onto the castle grounds with so many guards around. "You're... comforted.. by this tree? I guess this tree has meaning to everyone." She giggles to herself when Robin blinks in shock at her answer but he soon joins her in laughter. Lucina stops and then murmurs, "I like this tree because I think the apples taste the best from this one." It wasn't exactly a lie but she felt as though this stranger wasn't supposed to know the secret of her and Daddy's tree. "Though Daddy was supposed to have a picnic with me underneath it today... but he lied to me again. So I just came out here by myself." Her lips quivers but she bites it to hide it from this man she had just met. Still, Robin reaches out and pulls the lip away, similar to how her Daddy did. Daddy didn't like it when she bit her lip, asking if it hurt at all.

"What a queer habit. I used to do that as well. But it isn't good to bite, Princess Lucina. You don't want to make your Father upset do you? He didn't like it when people did that." _You mean he didn't like it when only you did that._ "Did you really come out here alone?" He glances at her fidgeting fingers, waiting until she feels ready enough to confide in him. "Is it maybe because he has to leave on a mission today?" When the five-year-old perks up at the truth, Robin acknowledges her disappointment and affliction, having felt it so many times himself. "He was always a busy man and tirelessly worked for this halidom which is why I could guess that he would still do it now. Though what a shame he can't spend this nice day with you. Wouldn't you agree?"

The bright light blue dress ripples fluidly as she plops down on the grass, picking at in a disheartened fashion. "I'm not talking to him right now." She continues to pluck the blades between her fingers, stealing a glance every once in a while to see what Robin's expression was. "Are you really good at keeping secrets? I don't want you to tell Daddy." Hugging her knees to her chest, she rests her chin on it and looks to Robin with trusting eyes.

The albino smiles slightly and nods, "I am skilled at keeping secrets. I will always guard yours if you wish to entrust it to me." He tucks the book behind him and leans in close, knowing that when people wanted to speak their secrets they had a hard time admitting them aloud. When Lucina looks up at him for courage, he beckons encouragingly for her to come closer so they could share this secret with no chance of any other finding out.

"You promise? You can't tell anyone!" She chides softly in warning as she creeps forward and settles by his side, to which Robin chuckles quietly and salutes rigidly to his new 'mistress'. "On your life?" Her trusting eyes narrow as though she was attempting to test him with her practiced hard-lined gaze, peering into his soul and seeing if this stranger could be worth her secret at all.

Robin raises his right hand in honorable oath and makes a straight face. "On my life, my Princess. I will not tell a soul." Though his dark eyes glisten mischievously as he grins to the sitting figure in the tall green grass. He had no intention of revealing her secret if there was no need but he couldn't help but find her grave nature quite amusing.

Lucina sighs and looks off into the waving grass, glancing at it longingly, the atmosphere suddenly changing to be forlorn. "He's leaving again... even though he promised. Daddy promised to ride the horsies with me but he has to go again on another mission." Her soft eyes harden for a minute and she stomps at the grass angrily. "It's not fair! He's _my_ Daddy. So why do I have to share him with all of Ylisse! He never stays home for long and I really miss him when he has to go. He's too busy for me... but I thought... I thought when parents have kids they want them... Doesn't he want me?" Her eyes begin to fill with tears and she quickly wipes them away with the back of her hand.

Robin reaches out for Lucina and though she had never been one to trust strangers, she throws herself into Robin's arms, taking cover and clutching his clothes. Her trembling body quivers in silent sobs and the tactician nuzzles her hair, patting her back softly. _If only you were my own._ "Chrom loves you very very much, Lucina. You're his special little girl. He would trade the world for you so don't speak so ill of him, Princess. I'm certain that it agonizes him to leave as much as you hate to watch him go."

Lucina cries and wraps her arms around Robin's neck. "I understand why he has to go... I know why he's so busy. I really do understand. I understand lots. But.. But it doesn't make it hurt any less. Why does he have to be the Exalt? I just want him to be my Daddy." She nestles against the pale neck, feeling as though this man had watched over her since birth. Though the truth was he was absent for all of it, something he wished terribly that he could alter. He hadn't been there for her birth, nor when she was ill or injured. He hadn't been there in her life at all when he should've been watching her and protecting her like any appointed guardian should have. Yet.. he had left...

Robin holds her close, hugging her tightly, embracing her and wishing that she would call _him_ her Father as well but... "Some things in life are that way. We understand but it doesn't make the path we choose any easier to walk. It somehow hurts more along the way as though we've accepted the fact that... we'll never achieve what we desire so deeply." Robin bites his lip as a pain overtakes his heart and before he knows it he has shut his eyes and can see Chrom's pained expression. _Robin... as much as I love you.. I.. I have a people to serve. They need me and they need to see that I...have continued the traditions since time. Which means marrying and having an heir who will continue the Royal line. _The white haired man grits his teeth. And Chrom would never be able to produce that heir with him nor would he ever find peace if the people did not accept who the Exalt had taken as a lover. Dismissing his own dark thoughts, he pats Lucina's back and pulls away, a practiced grin on his face to lighten the air. "I may not be as good as your father but you know who can ride horses even better than your Father?"

The princess's sniffling stops for but a moment and she sticks out her bottom lip sighing exasperatedly. It was incredible how children could desert their passionate emotions for another in but an instant. He only wished he had that sort of power to alter his feelings just as quickly, that way he'd only feel sorrow for a minute's passing before elation or exasperation as in Lucina's case. "Uncle Frederick," she replies in a deadpan tone. "That's what Daddy always says but he's just making excuses! I don't want to ride with Uncle Frederick. I want to ride with _him_!" She groans in aggravation as if Chrom just wasn't getting the picture and maybe he wasn't.

Suppressing a bout of laughter, Robin clears his throat and tries to question seriously. "Why the sigh, Lucina? Don't tell me that Frederick isn't good enough for you. He's the best rider I've ever met. He control his horse with amazing talent." When Lucina settles on his lap and leans her head against him in a tired manner, his lips twitching into what could have been the beginnings of a smirk. "What my Princess," he murmurs, cuddling her long, flowing hair.

Lucina whines, wiggling in frustration. "He's too strict and stern! He won't let me do anything lest he be afraid I fall off! Why would I do that! The point is to ride the horsies! He wants to put me in all the armor and headgear so I don't hurt myself if I fall off of Stargazer but the helmet makes it really hard to see and the armor is so _heavy._ Of course I can't ride with Uncle Frederick!" She huffs and slides off of Robin's lap, flopping onto her back and having a puff of dandelion fluff float up around her as she lies on the grass. "I really want Daddy. He's away so often."

Robin smiles half-heartedly, looking at the blue sky adorned with white puffed clouds and breathing in the clean, fresh air. "I know how you feel Lucina. I miss him a lot too. It's been six years since I've chanced upon his presence." At the number, Lucina immediately gets back up and blinks at Robin. He laughs softly more for his own comfort than her own, wanting so desperately to release the guilt and anger beginning to ensnare his heart and overtake him again. "Yes I knew him before you were born. You should be... five correct?" She nods cautiously as something in his eyes is lost and longing. Broken and incomplete. Miserable. "I ran away in fear but I've decided to face him once more." He smiles sadly and shakes his head, his shoulder shaking in a silent tremor. "But I guess I still am a coward. I haven't told him. I'm here yet I delayed our meeting by falling asleep under this tree." He looks at the chocolate-colored bark, caressing its smooth quality with his fingertips and grinning. "This is my favorite tree in all of Ylisstol. Maybe all of Ylisse."

_"Robin... I... I think I love you..." Chrom is a blushing, flustered mess, scratching the back of his head nervously with his gloved hands. Gods this was coming out all wrong. Was this really all he could say? After all he had practiced beforehand?! He dares to glance Robin who is still in mid-bite of his apple. "Robin?"_

_The apple falls to the floor and the second it does, so does the couple under the young apple tree. Robin tackles Chrom to the ground in a desperate hug, embracing him with all of his might. "I.. I love you too Chrom..." He nuzzles the warm comforting neck the way he had wanted to all these years, his tears touching the skin. "Chrom..." _

_Chrom lies there with Robin on his chest, aimlessly running his fingers through the soft white locks and gazing at the sun peeping through the green healthy leaves. "Today must be my lucky day. With a sky so beautiful, nothing can go wrong. I love blue skies and its a shame to do much else than be with the person you love on these kinds of days. It's as though the Heavens themselves want people to be happy. Don't you think so as well?" _

A nudge brings him back to the present. "So are you going to tell me why you like this tree? Or are you just going to pat it?" Lucina eagerly looks up to him, giggling, as Robin starts in shock, as if suddenly getting his bearings. Suddenly tears rush to Robin's eyes, falling like the stars Lucina had watched from her window at night whenever there was a meteor shower. It had a unique beauty to it. Beautiful but sorrowful just like a falling star that blitzes across the sky for but a moment. "Your tears remind me of falling stars. Pretty but sad." _I've never seen anyone cry as beautifully as you, Robin, but I wish it most if you didn't have to show such sorrow in the first place._ The tactician hurriedly wipes away the heartache off his face and replaces it with another masked air of happiness as to not worry Lucina any further who is already solemnly gazing at him. _How many blue skies have passed without anyone but Regret at my side? Were you with the person you loved when the sky was blue?_

Though the chestnut eyes shimmer with a slight sheen and his laugh is hollow but Lucina knows better than to press in matters such as this one. Daddy had told her that people usually didn't want to talk about these things. To help wash away the anguish lapping at his soul, Robin leans back against the tree and closes his eyes peacefully, breathing in the familiar scent of the air. "I love this tree because this is where I found true love. Though it was a short and ephemeral instant in my life, it was by far the greatest and I will never forget what I felt on that day. Never. For better or for worse." A lone tear slips from the corner of his closed eyes and the princess instinctively reaches up and brushes it away. Robin wakes from his thoughts, casting away his bonds of Regret and ruffles her hair playfully.

"Is that true?"

Robin's eyes widen and his gaze immediately turns to the figure standing emptily in front of him. His indigo gaze is vacant and he looks as though he's aged well beyond in his years not because his body had physically grown but because his soul was heavy with burdens. "Is it true?" He repeats, his leather gloves sounding as he clenches his fists. Lucina backs in fear of her father for the first time, never having sensed such an uneasy aura from him before. It was neither dangerous nor threatening. But more foreboding, like something brewing in a turmoil of emotions. Something that was dug up that maybe should've been buried forever. Nevertheless she toddles up, hugs his leg and looks up to him with big hopeful eyes.

Chrom shakily lays a hand on her head and feebly pats it before gently pushing her off of him. "Lucina this is a... I need you to go back to Mother alright? Wait there until I come back to say good-bye. I have... some talking to do with this man..." The Crown Princess immediately nods and runs off to find her Mother, not ever once it crossing her mind to disobey Daddy when he was like that.

As the blue-dressed form races through the grass, Robin can't help but wish he could be like her and run off. Become a bird and fly away. Become a deer and leap into the distance. But Regret laughs and keeps him chained to the very tree where he had met Love. He looks away, refusing to meet the other's eyes. He couldn't. There was no way. The tactician knew the word impossible. But this was the first time he ever felt that word befall upon him. Yet as Chrom steps closer, Robin is forced to look back by some unseeable force. "Is what true, my King?"

Chrom grabs Robin's cloak and throws him against the bark so that they are mere inches from one another. "Even if this tree pains you. Even if this tree rips through your chest and pierces you. Even if you regret ever meeting that person under this tree. Do you still love it?" His breath is heated but not in fashion Robin wished. It was hot with anger and burning with fury. Something in his mind snaps and he reflexively turns off his emotions and retreats into his mental fortress where no emotions passed through and no feelings came forth. He was a senseless and mindless tactician.

Robin smiles emptily and his eyes are sharp as he looks boldly back into the dark midnight eyes. "You should know yourself seeing as you never had the courage to destroy this tree down that pained _you._ Though whether it pained you or not is still uncertain since I will never be able to know if you loved me, or if your lust fueled the heat of the moment. They say it is common among friends who have been with each other often. Experimentation. Exploitation. There are many words for such an act. So which did you commit? One of love? Or lust?" _No. NO. This wasn't what he had meant to say. This wasn't why he had returned after six years. This wasn't the way he had wanted to hurt Chrom. He just... he just was... scared. It was as though by losing to fear, he was allowing another entity to speak for him. One who had been born and grown when he had been driven to the brink of destruction. A fail-safe plan. A fool-proof solution. It was so much easier to let this new Robin speak in his place but this wasn't why he had returned. No. He had come to reconcile._

Chrom clenches his teeth and drops the figure, his hands shaking violently in restraint. "Why have you come Robin? Is it to haunt me after all these years? You've already done that. So if that is all you want to do, torment me. Then go... I cannot bear your presence any longer than I must." He turns around, his cape fluttering around before him. One gloved hand covers his tear-filled eyes as the King quivers like a leaf in order to keep the sobs from escaping. He was weak. He still.. still... after all these years. He sinfully wished for the impossible.

Robin reaches out for the battered cloak, remembering how embarrassed and happy he had been the first time Chrom had put it on his own shoulders as a gesture of affection. It had looked terrible on him. For one the white color didn't match him the way it did for the Exalt, making his hair startlingly white and more blatant than ever. And they had quickly discovered that the King was structured much different from his tactician. The cape was loose around his shoulders for his build had been too small. But they had laughed and joked all the same, ending it in heated kisses and a scramble to find a bed. _Will you do the same now? Will you hand me your cloak like a lover? Will you hold me once more?_

In the same instant, Chrom turns around and Robin who had been reaching out for the white cloth, ends up with his hand resting on Chrom's chest, feeling the heartbeat through the material. It beats fast and strongly, promising to pound out of the very armor meant to protect it. "Chrom. What I said before... I was just.. I feared rejection." Daring to go further, his trembling fingers spread out slowly across the chest, his thumb caressing the warmth with familiarity. Suddenly it is eight years ago when they were naiive and hopelessly in love. Robin looks up to Chrom's eyes with fear and caution but also a sliver of hope. Hope and love. "Even if I can never do anything but stare at your back as you walk away from me, constantly out of my reach. I will never burn away the memories of my love with you. Though I've admittedly tried and am guilty of wanting to hate you, I never could. Remnants of our past together always crept into me. Inside my dreams. Inside my heart and I found that at the end of it all... I still love you." Tears rush down the pale face and Robin's fingers curl into a shaking fist. "Chrom."

A composed hand gently pulls Robin's own quivering fingers off of his body, slowly and purposefully. He lets the hand drop brokenly to the owner's side and pauses while Robin soundlessly weeps, feeling the bitter taste of defeat in his mouth. Robin takes a step back and tries to calm his mind to end the flow of the needless grief. He didn't want to embarrass himself any more than he had to. So this was all it was? This is all their love would ever be? A memory? An apple tree...

"Robin," he's heard it for the first time in six years and it doesn't hold the coldness, cruelty, or malice he had imagined all these years. But somehow that makes defeat more painful and brutal. His fingernails bite into his palms, mimicking the scars on the inside of his hands and tracing them over again. The scar he bore from the day he had left. The only scar that could physically be seen from the day he had left. The scar of the broken glass. He had simply wanted to know what it felt like to hold a broken glass heart in his hand and it had burned and seared. But mostly it had felt the same as he did now. Defeated.

"Robin look at me." The command is soft and gentle which makes Robin's silent weeping escape through his throat in a choking sob. The once gloved hand is exposed, the rough calloused fingers brushing at his, wiping away the tears that fell like shooting stars. Robin tries to shy away from the affectionate gestures which causes the soothing fingers to tenderly grip his chin and tilt his face up so he can gaze into the other's. _Chrom was crying?_

Chrom smiles shakily and wipes another fleeting waterdrop from the shocked face with his thumb. "Robin though I swore that day we would always be apart. I have never regretted anything so much. The day you left, I was distraught and none could comfort me." He gives a wry laugh and his hand drops only to wrap around the slender waist. He pulls Robin close and kisses the lips he had thirsted for a thousand years it seemed. And the refreshing and relieving quality of it was beyond healing. "I have given my heart to someone and all this time I have been searching for the owner. Now I realize that it really only can be you. You hold my heart so guard it well." Chrom leans in for another kiss while Robin jumps up and wraps his arms around the other's neck. _I love you._

**Big shout out to my Yuki-tan who so graciously drew my profile and fanfiction covers. Aren't they awesome? *wiggles eyebrows* For everyone who made it this far, sankyuu. I hope you all enjoyed this little angst monster and I will try to finish this as quickly and painlessly as possible(aka I will kill you all with angst spears hopefully). I have school and a lot of studying to do so please have mercy on me. Til next time. For all you yaoi fans, promise for lemonade. Or refund~**

**Yours truly, Volpe Sky**


	2. Chapter 2

**YLISSIANS! Okay I'm sorry. There's literally no other way around it. I'M SORRY! I was so busy over summer. Mission trips. Volunteering. Summer school to get ahead and push classes out of the way. So much other crap. And then of course every week or so I get this cute little notification that says HEY PEOPLE ARE READING YOUR STUFF, UPDATE YOU IDIOT. Yes I know. I'm sorry. I know there are some of you that were with me when the first chapter just came out and you have waited all this time. I promise that my next update will hopefully come a little closer. Thank you to Rina-chan, JunjouVampire, and oblivion9032 for reviews. I actually didn't ever think this fanfic would even be found. ^^;;;; so thank you minna~ So to thank you, I put the lemon closer than planned? Gasp. Are some of you leaving? Well this is sorta a pwp. I mean. I guess it's kinda(not really) sorta(you don't have to read it) important. I mean it creates more angst. Wow that sounds so bad. Anyway I don't put up a red flag in the middle of my work because I feel like that just ruins the build-up so I'm going to let you know for everyone who doesn't want to read the lemon it's after the first page break and then until the end. Sorry. Thank you everyone. Promise the next chapter will come out soon. -VolpeSkyFire28**

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The moonlight filters in through the tent flap, gently gracing her rays on the shoulders of a child of the night, whose luminescent white hair mimicked her own palor. His pencil grazes the paper in soft strokes, outlining with love the sleeping face of the man before him. It would be apparent to anyone how much the tactician cared for the Exalt because every subtle trace and detail was thoughtfully ingrained into the sketch. Robin sighs softly as he turns his gaze towards the open tent flap, letting the soothing night breeze in rhythmically. The moon was still high in the sky, signaling the peak of the night but he still had yet to find sleep within him. Though he couldn't say he minded, for the chance to draw the unconscious figure so closely had not come by him for years. He shuts the sketchbook quietly and slips it into the king's satchel, intending it as a gift for him. It was the only sketchbook he had owned and the only one he would draw in again. Yes, it was true he had drawn on loose leaf papers but this was the first time he had ever drawn in a bound book simply for something other than to pass time and distract himself. Inside were all the drawings he had accumulated over the years as well as recent ones he had created with images of Lucina as well. Feeling the breeze graze the back of his neck, he knew. _It was time._

For a while now, he had been contemplating the conflict of leaving but after being satisfied with one last picture, he had made his decision to go. Rising from his chair, he takes his coat off the hook and slips it on, wishing that he could simply rewind time and stop in the moment of this perfect night forever. It had been a mistake for him to come back in the first place. There were certain things time couldn't heal and this was one of them. No matter how much time passed, Chrom would be the Exalt, be married to a wife, seated on the throne until the day he drew his last breath. And that wasn't an experience Robin was fond of witnessing. It was best this way that he left with only the perfect image of his first love engraved into his mind. In that sense, Chrom would live on forever as a memoir than die as an illicit lover. His own selfish needs had forced him to walk back to the castle and now that he had retied the broken bonds, it was time for him to leave. The albino glances at the desk, covered with scattered maps and notations across them. They had already discussed the plans for the upcoming battles and he knew that the seasoned soldier would be fine without him. Working up his resolve, he lets his boots shuffle on the ground and moves to leave.

"Where are you going?"

Robin stops short and pauses at the entrance, hesitating slightly. Before him lay the open grass and pastures, calling out to his spirit. He had always been a wanderer and though it was a lonesome life, he would suffocate if he was to remain hidden in the shadows forever, imprisoned in his own guilt and never being able to touch the one he loved wholesomely. He wanted to have all of Chrom or none at all. Being in the middle ground was too painful and humiliating. Yet the way Chrom tugged at his heart strings, begging to be answered, didn't leave him with much of a choice anymore. He curses the Heavens for waking the man who had been slumbering just a few moments before. Robin hears the royal rise from the bed and grits his teeth, knowing he had to answer Chrom or run off. Still neither option seemed promising. He wished there was a way to make the Exalt understand his reasoning behind it all, knowing full well how adamant and stubborn the man could be. And though his heart fluttered at the fact that Chrom was being obstinate for _him, _it didn't change the fact that the tactician no longer belonged here. Not even the army wanted the albino anymore, blaming him for the deaths of their comrades in his absence.

"I asked you where you were going, Robin." Yet it doesn't come with impatience or anger, rather a smooth and gentle reminder as though Chrom was trying to relay delicate emotions to coax Robin into telling him the truth. Chrom knew the man had a habit of staying silent in times where he felt guilty, not daring to speak at all lest he tell the truth or lie. Robin breathes in sharply when the Exalt closes the distance between then and presses his body flushed to the other's back. The indigo breathes lightly, nuzzling the pale, unmarked neck, trailing kisses along it as if that would loosen Robin's tongue. "Were you going to leave without saying goodbye?" There is slight disappointment and hurt in the question and the albino can feel his resolve slipping further and further away as Chrom rests his chin on the other's shoulder. The silence only leads to more tension within the snow-haired man, as if time was trying to convince him to simply tell the royal the truth. He sighs, admitting that he should've known better than to attempt and best someone who always won over him whether it be in battle or love.

Robin turns reluctantly and nestles against Chrom's heated skin, hoping that his cool forehead didn't bother the taller too much. "I suppose I can't leave now, can I?" He closes his dark brown eyes and just listens to the drumming and lulling heartbeat, enjoying its rhythmic pattern. The timely beats reminded him that his lover was finally in front of him, breathing and alive, real and true. That after a long struggle, he had reunited to let his heart beat beside the other's yet... "I apologize. I just supposed it'd be easier if I left without a goodbye. However you, like always, thwarted my attempts." However he had to admit happiness that Chrom had stopped him, for he had not wanted to leave without a last kiss at least. He presses his lips softly to the collarbone and looks up into the deep midnight pools.

In spite of the fact that Robin had expected them to shine with a more placid and relaxed air given the seriousness of his tone earlier, they shimmer a dark and lustful navy blue. "If you try that again, I'll tie you up to the bed during the night so you can't leave. I don't expect you'd enjoy that would you, my little Robin. Trying to flit away like a bird, are you?" Chrom places a deep and slightly possessive kiss on the pale pink lips, nipping them for good measure. Taking a more tender tone, he murmurs, "I waited six years for you and I don't intend on waiting anymore. Do you understand? Every night I watched outside my window and every morning I waited by the door. _I'm not letting you go._" His arm curls around the lean waist, tugging the body towards his own and hanging onto it tightly as if anchoring Robin's soul to himself. He knew that Robin could leave and go like a spirit of the wind and this time he didn't desire to see the man slip through his fingers. "I awoke because I couldn't sense your presence beside me any longer."

"Hm?" The tactician vaguely remarks that this was a rarity for Chrom who was normally a deep and sound sleeper. Since when had he developed a habit of such shallow unconscious? _He just told you himself he's been waiting all this time for you. Don't you think this amount of stress would keep anyone up for hours and cause them to develop such a routine? Look at all the trouble you've caused._ Yet the warmth of the indigo's embrace is dissolving his better judgment quickly and soon the only thing on his mind is how secure and safe the arms are wrapped around him. Suddenly sharing the bed together seems to be the most inviting and tempting pleasure and the urgency of leaving has faded, sleep starting to fog his mind and his rationale. "Chrom let's head to bed. The battle is only in two moons," but the truth of the matter was that Robin wanted nothing more than to feel this breathing body asleep beside his own.

Chrom nips the fairer neck and murmurs heatedly, "I doubt we will get any sleep, Lieutenant. I have other plans in mind. And whether you agree to them or not, I intend to follow through with them. So don't you think it'd just be easier if you agreed to what I have in mind?" His hands begin to ride up the tactician's shirt, exposing the white skin to the light of the moon, making it seem to shimmer a silver color. "Join me in bed, Robin. I intend to reunite with you completely. How many nights I spent sleepless because you weren't in my bed, I cannot say. I only know I have watched many moons journey across the night sky." He leans in for another rough and raw kiss against the protesting lips.

The jacket falls to the floor in a crumpled mess but Robin gently pushes Chrom away, looking away to hide his flushed cheeks. "Are we even allowed to do this, My Liege?" He adds the formality to subtly remind them both that they had statuses to maintain and keep them apart. "The reason we split apart was because this was taboo and now we're going to engage in the same acts we swore to never commit again? Is it not enough I am in your bed? We now have a role to fulfill and we both know that it hangs over our heads like a death sentence. We mustn't break the status quo." When Chrom looks away, grinding his teeth, Robin lovingly caresses the man's chest. "I only say it with warning. Not to pain you, Chrom."

"That was before I realize that I had a thirst that only could be quenched from one well. And I damn well intend to drink from it." Chrom gives a soft growl and nuzzles Robin's neck, acting as though someone was trying to steal away his most treasured possession and he was seeking to mark it as his own once more. "Robin, I love you. I never quite believed in engaging in a forbidden affair but after pining for a love as strong as this one, I would easily forgive any of ancestors who committed such a thing. I didn't ever once try and claim that what we are doing is right but do you really intend to leave again and let us continue on our lives once more miserably and in agony? May the gods curse me for being so weak-willed but I am weak to you, Robin. Every waking thought is obsessively filled with you. And now that you're here it only fuels my love further. I can hardly hold back from touching my lover. My true lover. The one who stole my heart only to return and offer it back to me. Robin..."

The Grandmaster sighs, grimly looking at the King, pleading him to search for his usual unwavering rationale. "I still don't think its right, Milord. Even if we were man and woman, this kind of thing is rather..." The other remains stubbornly silent, unwilling to finish the sentence as though by ignoring it he was somehow denying the fact ever existed. He was adamant on the matter. Robin would be only his and that was where he would stand forever on the matter. For better or worse. "Chrom! Listen! I just think-"

Chrom heatedly kisses Robin silent, his hot breath coming out in between the kisses. His eyes begin to shimmer with a thin glazed viel of desire as he whispers, "Then just don't think..."

* * *

Robin gasps and bites his lip as he feels a heated, wet appendage trail itself up his member slowly, savoring every inch of it. He doesn't dare look down at the man before him doing such lewd things to his body. Yet despite having just told himself that when he steals a glance down at Chrom obediently and diligently, he doesn't at all regret it. The sight only pushes him ever closer to the edge as his eyes follow Chrom's pink tongue flick out over his pale skin before being replaced by the lips, waiting to devour and suckle across the hardening length. "Chrom! I... Please stop before-"

Chrom's deep chuckle only sends chills down his spine as Robin twists and turns in the sheets, desperately trying to break their contact. It was disgraceful to release into the Exalt's mouth. He simply wouldn't allow it. Though if this session was to go like any others from before, the indigo wouldn't stop until every drop had been squeezed out of the tactician. Chrom slips his finger inside the pink, twitching entrance once again into Robin, already having slicked it in oil, and is rewarded by the muffled yelp of surprise. Robin was loosening up but the king knew he would have to be gentle nonetheless. Not that he minded, since he would get the chance to cherish every inch of his lover. The only problem that with Robin already kindling a fire of lust in him, and it was quite possible he wouldn't be able to control himself. He plunges another finger inside of Robin, fingers curling and prodding for the special spot that could make Robin tip over the edge with hardly any effort at all, teasing and pressing on it slowly. "I cannot say which is more alluring," Chrom whispers in between licks, "you attempting to muffle your cries, or the sweet ones that slip through your clenched teeth."

Robin turns his head to the side and bites into the sheets, feeling the edge looming closer. Just then, the heat comes off his leaking length and Robin sighs in both disappointment and relief. Though when Chrom lies on his back and pulls the other on top of him, he flushes realizing which position the king had chosen for tonight. He shyly straddles the tanned waist, feeling over the chiseled muscles lightly with his fingers. They dance over every curve, edge, and groove, tracing the hard-earned muscles with affection. Yet when he begins to run across the thick scars and deep wounds, he realizes the cost as well. Finding new scars he had never seen here and there, Robin looks away in shame, wondering how many battles Chrom had been injured without him by his side. Maybe if he had been there and not run like a coward, several of these wounds would not be there. How many times had he almost lost Chrom to the sword of a Plegian or Risen?

The Exalt props himself up on his elbows and gently tilts Robin's chin towards him so that they can look at one another eye-to-eye. "I know what you are thinking, my foolish little tactician. But the past is the past. These are not your fault. The job of a Shepard was never meant to be easy. It only matters that you stand beside me now." He softly runs his thumb over the pale skin of the albino's cheeks.

Robin begins to push the royal back down, his cheeks blazing a rosy pink palor. "Are we going to continue, Sire?" He didn't know why he was blushing like a girl waiting to give her chastity to her first man, but the intimacy of it all was making him more timid than usual. He runs his fingers over Chrom's chest again as if to reassure himself that this man was in front of him before grabbing the oil and dipping his fingers in it.

Chrom's pupils dilate with lust and he watches intensely as Robin hesitantly pokes a slicked finger into himself to check for a last time. He lightly takes the other's length, running his lathered fingers over it to cover it in oil before starting to let the swollen head press at his entrance. Slowly he takes in the length, inching down as he feels it fill him and stretch him from rim to rim, the sensation of it all filling his head. It slides into him smoothly until he reaches mid-way down, finding it hard to continue any further on his own. Chrom's breaths come a little short and fast as he watches the albino rock his hips back and forth slightly, still attempting to ease his way down. His quivering hands grip Robin's sides and he lifts him up a few inches before pushing him back down. "I... can't wait... any longer... we'll just start shallow," he breathes out.

Robin clacks shut his jaw, realizing that it had been gaping open lewdly this entire time. However Chrom chuckles lowly and pries it open again, gazing at the pink tongue salivating ever so slightly. "Leave it." The command is not expressed sharply but it still sends chills up Robin's body and pools at his member, causing it to perk up again. The calloused fingers run down Robin's own bare chest, the rough texture causing sinfully pleasurable sensations when they ran over the sensitive nipples. The child of Grima bites his tongue, certain that the fell dragon would be able to hear his immoral cries. The king continues to run his hands down, tracing the soft lines along Robin's hips that would lead to his length but instead of reaching for it as he normally would, he continues to circle around, getting painfully close but never quite making contact. Robin whines slightly in frustration before stopping his complaint mid-breath, realizing just how desperate he sounded. Though still eager to earn his reward, he rocks his hips faster causing Chrom to grit his teeth at the delicious sensations shooting all the way down to his toes. In retaliation, Chrom starts to spread open the silvery legs. "Spread them, Robin. I want to engrave every inch of this body into my mind."

Robin opens his legs shyly as Chrom watches his twitching, pale member. Eager to get the attention off of his length, he shakily puts his hands on Chrom's chest and begins to thrust his hips, moving them up and down to get the friction they both so desired. Chrom arcs back, moaning as Robin clenches tightly around him unconsciously. He could hardly stand the tight wet ring of muscle squeezing his length so sinfully. When he cracks his eyes open, he finds Robin with his mouth open lewdly and a clear trail of saliva running from the corner of his mouth, down his chin, and even down his neck. His eyes are clenched tight and it is apparent he is concentrating hard to keep moving. Bit by bit, Chrom delves in deeper with each rock of Robin's hips, each thrust sending him even further into the wet heat. The indigo can't tell if it because they are committing a forbidden act or if simply being with the one you truly loved was heightening the pleasure, but both of them were fighting to keep their cries within the confines of the tent.

The brown eyes are gazing intensely at Chrom now, half-lidded and glazed over with desire and passion. Robin leans in a bit forward, thrusting deeply now, taking Chrom to the hilt before pulling out a few centimeters from the tip and pushing it back in again. With eyes glowing like a tiger ensnaring its prey, he enraptures Chrom who cannot take his eyes away from the alluring angel before him, body almost alight with a white gleam. He throws his head back, his white hair flying back in all its silvery glory and leans back, placing one hand on the bed to help balance himself. His cheeks only become a darker crimson as he sees the midnight eyes boring into him, intensifying the sensations escalating up his body. The royal pants softly, unable to take his eyes off the erotic body before him, writhing and moving with fluidity. He nearly releases seeing Robin scrunch his face in pleasure, little creases climbing up the bridge of his nose. _Robin..._

* * *

There are no words throughout the night but none are needed for the simple touches and caresses, their movements and gazes, their closeness and intimacy speak it all. Speak the stories of the six years before their bodies reunited. Only the slick sound of skin on skin can be heard from the bed, but the air is thick with emotion and ecstasy, not only from their pleasurable movements, but from the bliss of being together as one on that night. The last night they would spend scrambling for the twinkling shards of their hearts, dust of their souls, the pieces of their love. The very last night...

* * *

**Hot? Yes no? Yes? Oh the next chapters will be my favorite which will hopefully instill me with motivation to finish it faster. We'll see. And I promise the next one actually moves the plot along. Until next time. -Volpe out~**


	3. Chapter 3

**Hello Ylissians! I am somehow still alive... I'm sorry about the delay... again. But thanks to some very encouraging reviewers I decided to finally finish the chapter tonight. I'm really sorry for procrastinating on it but it just needed a lot of editing I didn't really want to do. Haha. This is the part of the "AU" that begins to merge with the real storyline. So without further ado, here is the latest chapter**

**~VolpeSky**

* * *

_"What if I can't keep your promise?"_

* * *

"Move Robin!" Chrom yells, swinging his falchion over the pale head to cut down another Risen. Instinctively the tactician ducks as the glimmer of metal and hiss of something slicing through air itself sounds. The steel only hacks through halfway through the rotting, grey chest. Chrom grits his teeth in disgust as the Risen soldier continues to open and close his jaw repulsively and move his limbs unnaturally, bending them this way and that. It was a spawn from Hell and Death that never should've entered this world. A world he had wished for so long that his children could play in the shining sun not amongst clouds of darkness and suffocating despair. The indigo changes his grip, putting both his hands on the adorned handle in an inelegant formation by having both his hands facing the same direction, and twists the sword slowly in the dead animated body, before pulling it out with a sickening crunch and waiting for the demon to dissolve. At this rate, he was afraid that he was going to lose his soul to these beasts, the way they were forcing him to toss aside his majestic manners for brutal maneuvers. Brutality against Brutality. Though Chrom liked to claim that he fought with dignity, the battleground at this moment was causing him to be sickened by his own reflection in the murky puddles sitting in between crevices. Panting heavily, the royal lets the tip of his weapon click on the rock tiles while offering a hand to his tactician. "That... was close... Pay attention to your surroundings. It would be tragic losing a good soul to these heathens."

The both of them stand painfully, surveying the dark terrain with distraught eyes. Everywhere reeks of death and sin, black smoke of the Risen in the sky and crimson red blood from the humans leaking on the ground. The clashing of weapons rings in their ears loudly, the sound waves clamoring against the very walls of their minds, driving them to complete insanity. It was nearly impossible to think justly in the cacophony of screams and growls, the animalistic cries making their way to the Heavens and most certainly causing them to look down disdainfully on these immoral humans. It was as though Man had become Beast and Beasts of the earth had become more moral than Man. Chrom bites his lip and clenches his sword, hoping that the weapon would give him energy and strength as it always did in times like these. But instead it nearly wilts in his hand, covered in a malicious misty blood that was refusing to let go, leeching off the strength of both the King and his falchion. "Gods, what has the world come to?"

Robin shakes his head, fingers clenching his tome with almost enragement. These Risen were hurting his people and destroying the land they had worked so hard to protect from others. Now fighting amongst men nearly seemed trivial compared to the horrors that were unfolding before their eyes in the underground. This terrain was not theirs but of something more evil that enjoyed lurking in the shadows and hiding in dark spaces. They were losing the fight in enemy territory and Robin was beginning to wish for fights against human minds that could think, be read, and challenged rather than these mindless monsters that were thirsting for nothing but blood. "It's not your fault. I should've prepared better. The weight to bear is mine." _I am one of them. I am of Grima's blood. I should've been able to think and predict what terrors they'd bring._ His brown eyes darken in defeat as he watches comrade after comrade hit the unforgiving, cold floor with their dying breath. His slender form trembles until Chrom puts his hand on his quivering shoulder.

"Stop, Robin. Even now your weakness is still yourself, isn't it?" The royal gives a tired yet familiar smile, reminiscing how so many battles before, the circumstances had always been the same. "You need to give yourself credit. We made it this far. And we never could have fathomed Validar would bring an endless army." The blue eyes turn icy with a dangerous yet determined glint as the King pours energy and life into his weapon, asking it once more to fight alongside him and cut true. Without batting an eye, Chrom twirls his sword to hold it backhand and slashes behind him at another Risen. "It isn't over yet. There's still hope. There is always hope. Humans may be immoral and bicker among one another to no ends but we are hopeful fools. The only thing we may claim with pride is the fact that we never lose faith." He leans in close to Robin's ear and murmurs, "Whatever happens tonight, swear to me that you will walk away peaceful. You have to take the silent oath that you will continue to live your life for me. Please."

Robin pulls the hood over his head and bites his quaking lip. "How can I not? I am the one who has destruction as a cloak, bringing down the world before me as I walk. Every footstep of mine offsets dust of the dead. I breathe the same air that those Risen do." Before Chrom can say anything more, Robin starts to let the energy flow back into his fingers, willing magic to fly from his hands. "Let us continue to battle, Milord. The others are waiting for that." Grabbing his tome and starting to mutter incantations, the snow-haired man runs into the heat of the battle, throwing himself into the dark choking clouds of death. _What if I can't keep your promise?_

* * *

"Robin! Robin!" The crown falls off her head as she throws her head back in exasperation and she scrambles to get it back intertwined with her blue locks. The five-year-old princess plops the ring back onto her head before motioning vigorously for Robin to come quickly! Though when her parents looked at the sky with the same look of utter exasperation, _their_ crowns didn't fall off. She'd have to ask Daddy how he did that another time. She looks back to check on Robin's progress, the white form only having neared a bit closer. Just what was taking him so _long!_ As if to humor her, Robin purposefully takes tiny steps and inches his way along, smiling at her all the while before she sits back down on the grass and lies there. "Roooooobinnn," she whines, kicking up her feet in a very unlady-like manner as Uncle Frederick always said. "Robin I'll die if you come to me any slower!"

The tactician runs the rest of the way, his boots treading lightly on the green grass, creating a trodden down path behind him in the delicate, fragile, long grass. "Yes, my Princess," he murmurs, breathlessly at the eagle-spread girl, tongue-stuck out and lying on the ground while pretending to be in a far away afterlife. He kneels beside her, giggling softly to himself and starts placing white daffodils on her chest, setting up her hands to hold the new bouquet. "Oh dear, whatever shall I tell Chrom? His precious little Lucina has died because of my atrocity of arriving late. I guess she will never ever get to eat the apple pie."

"PIE!" She pops straight up off the ground like a sunflower sprouting towards the warm sun, her eyes glittering brightly. Robin laughs and rises once more, holding out his arm to escort his lovely princess into the castle for the fine dining of cake. She bounces up from the ground before plopping back down on the ground, shaking her head wildly. "No! No! Wait, there was something I must tell you before even pie!" Robin lifts up an eyebrow in curious amusement and Lucina giggles before beckoning closer, cupping her small hands around his nearing ear. "I know that you have to leave with Daddy to go on this mission. So... So you have to promise that when you come back, _you'll_ ride the horsies with me too!" Her grin nearly spreads across her whole face as she puts her hands behind her back and rocks on her heels, a soft pink blush tinging her cheeks. "Okay? You have to! Otherwise I have to ride with Uncle Frederick..." When Robin doesn't respond for a minute, desperately attempting and failing to cover his laughter at her dejection at the thought of riding with the Ylisse guardian, Lucina sighs in mock frustration and tugs on his cloak. "Come on Robin! Promise me! Promise meeeee!" This only incites Robin to laugh even louder and she scrunches her face in fierce determination. Jumping up, she attaches herself onto the man and begins to inch her way up his body until finally she makes it up to his chest. She nuzzles his neck, breaking into another grin and giving him a hug so strong, he nearly tumbles backwards from it. "You gotta bring Daddy home safe, alright? I heard you're the very very _very _smartest person on the whole battlefield. So you hafta promise to bring him home."

Robin wraps his arms around her almost naturally, closing his eyes and nuzzling her hair, as if he had done this his entire life. It was nearly as if he had watched over her in just this fashion. "Yes, my Lucina. I promise. I swear that I will bring home Chrom safely." He rubs her back gently before she pulls away again and narrows her eyes. Robin chuckles and nods, "And yes I _will _ride the horsies with you."

"Promise!"

"Promise."

* * *

"Sire! We can hold the rest of them off!" Frederick impales another Risen while trying to keep his horse under control, tugging on the reins and patting her side. He looks off towards Validar whose face is beginning to twitch ever so slightly with irritation instead of the smug arrogance that had been there only a few moments before. Chrom nods at Robin before taking off towards the King of Plegia, running with all his might and not intending to stop. The two clash magnificently, sparks flying from Chrom's metal sword and Validar's magic one. Black and white continue to throw themselves at one another, ferociously attempting to topple the other in a power struggle. Suddenly a premonition of terror hits Robin and his eyes widen with a growing horror he can not locate nor explain. _Stop._

The albino's footfalls start to quicken and making sure to concentrate on accuracy, he lowers his strength to increase the pinpoint precision of his hits. An incantation begins under his breath again and the power begins to flow into his fingers again. But the flow of magic does not calm his heart as Validar growls and is thrown backwards little by little, losing his ground and beginning to back up against a wall. The further he is forced back, the more the fear grows and boils inside of Robin's chest. It wraps around him slowly, slithering up his sides like a cold-blooded serpent and piercing his heart. It squeezes and begins to suffocate him bit by bit, just like the steps forcing Validar back little by little. "Chrom! Get away-"

Validar, clenching his teeth like a cornered lion, leaps into the sky, trying to take on the form of air and turn invisible. Yet Robin, sensing the ploy as a sorcerer so similar to the other, reads the movements and shoots a high energy bolt of lightning at the fleeing cloud. Being forced back to the ground, the dark socerer falls but not before sending another deadly bolt at Chrom. _Stop! _Robin sends another force of lightning as well to repel Validar's dark one. The two high energies collide, blowing away rocks and forcing everyone to shield themselves from the shock. Before the smoke can even clear, Robin immediately begins to summon a more powerful wave of energy, his heart racing the wind at this point with its urgency and fervor. Something was wrong. Something was going to happen. A premonition. A premonition.

The dark mage looks at Robin with a mildly interested look, glancing at him with a little more respect and admiration. "You're either blindly brave or stupidly arrogant. Running towards me with that much power and determination? It's almost as if you are asking to die and become mine," he spits out, curling his fingers to form another gateway for energy to pool at. As his lips move in another curse, Robin quickly whispers a spell to begin directing the strong waves of magic to reverse the effects of Validar's, creating a counterforce of magic. The two both lock their stances, Validar standing firmly on his two feet and Robin putting one foot behind him to help him prepare for the magic he was about to summon from his tome. Putting one gentle hand on the book, he grimaces ever so slightly, feeling the energy surge through his fingers and up his arm, waiting to be commanded and directed. In a situation like this, his face would be laced with the faint sign of victory as his vision sharpened and he could see every muscle twitch in his enemy. But instead his eyes frantically rake at Validar's body, searching desperately for any movement that would give away his next onslaught of magic. Faster. Quicker. More. He needed to be even better than he had ever been before. Someone's life depended on it.

Chrom starts to take a step forward but Robin stops him, shaking his head in a fierceness that the King had never seen from the gentle figure. "Don't come closer! It's between me and him! I know it is... fate has waited for this day." He starts to mold the energy into the direction he wants, channeling it to become highly concentrated and powerful. _Please. Please let it end here and now. This has to be the final shot._ Just as Validar's hand lights up and a smirk laces his sorcerer's face, Robin quickly lets the force go, letting it flow out of him like a waterfall that had finally been released.

Light consumes the both of them and with dark and light mixing so interchangeably, everyone stops to glance at the blinding force before turning their heads away in pain at the sheer brightness. Robin clenches his eyes shut and simply trusts the magic in his fingertips to guide him and lead him towards the target, not being able to rely on sight any longer. He lets out a breath he had previously been holding and the energy shoots out even faster. A scream pierces the air but Robin cannot tell whose it is, feeling as though the sound was so far away.

In an instant, the room falls dark again, the Risen have disappeared and everyone struggles to see in the dimness after such brilliance. Robin falls to his knees and gasps for breath, perspiration falling off his chin and splattering on the floor quickly. Validar's body drops but instead of stopping at the knees, it falls until he is completely facedown on the cold tiles in the defeat Robin had waited so long to see. Still! The foreboding terror in his chest does not fade but only grow, nearly causing his head to reel with thoughts of death and pain. _Leave. Leave now. Everyone. Leave. Something terrible is about to befall us all._

Chrom turns back, finally being able to see once more at the fallen figure and a tired grin marks his face he looks back to Robin in victory. The blue eyes light up in a happiness and his face relaxes with relief that the battle was finally over. Suddenly the darkness swirling around Validar begins to speak, hissing and growling in a vengeance Robin had feared so greatly as he realizes... _His soul. I didn't destroy his soul. _Robin immediately gets back onto his feet and starts to move forward, feeling time slow down as he senses the magic moving in the air.

_Tick. __Chrom. Get away. _One foot falls onto the ground, echoing in Robin's ears as he forces his other leg to move. It's as though the reverberations from his own feet are forcing him to be pushed back. _Tock. __Leave! Leave!_ Another heel clicks on the rock floor, ringing in his eardrums but instead of speeding up, they only slow down, resounding off the walls ever so slightly. _Tick. __Turn around! Turn around! Can't you see! Move! _He slowly reaches out his hand as though it was moving through thick water and a weight had been attached to his wrist. He starts to reach for Chrom's chest, pushing it back as the magic starts to move towards the both of them. _Tock. _

_CHROM!_

* * *

_The world is turning sideways. No it's falling. No... I'm falling. The ground hits my side, crushing into my ribs and forcing the wind out of my lungs. The world I see out of my hood has begun to slow down, so much that sound is draining out as quickly as my lungs are._

Chrom rushes to my side, forcing me onto his lap and turning me up so I can see him. He smiles and nods happily, a victorious expression lighting up his entire face. Causing his blue eyes to glint with the special smile he had after a hard battle. That contagious look he always had and that would be passed onto me, forcing me to smile even if I was hurting like Naga was getting ready to send me into the afterlife. That victorious look we'd always share after a battle hard-fought for, but I can't bring my lips to move.

_Kill him._

Red begins to flow into my vision, flashing into my sight and then out of it. Something else is here... Something else is in my mind... with me.

"Thanks to you we saved the day."

_Red. Kill him. Kill him. You can do it. All that power you hold in those fingertips._ Without my willing, energy begins to pool in my hand, forcing its way out from my core and into my palm. My arm begins to tremble as the familiar flow of energy starts to run down to my fingertips. _No! Stop it! This isn't what I want!_

Chrom continues to talk but the sound continues to fall out of this Earth, leaving me completely. His lips move excitedly and he looks around, shouting what I determine, at Frederick and Gaius to begin to check others for wounds. At least... that's what I propose because I have to read his lips... He gestures this way and that, calmly as if he isn't holding a killer in his arms. It frustrates me to the point at which I could scream. _Please leave me!_

_You hate him. If he wasn't here, you'd be able to live your life as a free bird. Kill him. He's the one who sleeps with Sumia. He even had the courage and arrogance to have a child before your eyes as if proclaiming to you that you could never fulfill the duties his wife could. You could've been a king with me. You could've held the world in the very same fingertips. Kill him. _Inside I scream and scream at Chrom to move, to leave me. To leave the monster I knew, deep inside I'd always become. The mark of Grima on my hand served as proof that I would one day rise to strike down the one I loved so dearly. The only one who could claim my heart. I left Ylisse because I knew that Validar was my father, that he could control me. He had spoken to me before but I had been too afraid to let you know so I ran. I ran and ran. But selfishness had brought me to Chrom's home, into his life, into his arms once again and now the nightmare was...

Chrom starts to shift, aiming to pull me up with him. He helps me to sit up while I beat at the walls of my own mind, howling and battering at the chains keeping me from telling him. Telling him to move. To run away. To stop before I-

Chrom's eyes widen in shock and both of us stop breathing at the same time. His body clenches and his fingers dig into my shoulder he had been previously holding so tenderly. He stumbles backwards from the force of my blow... _mine._ Validar forces me so that I have to glance at my fingers still twitching with energy I hadn't meant to summon. However which is crueler, I could not say, looking at my own fingers in horror or looking back to see Chrom gasping in agony. I watch as the pain starts to seep into his body and his face twists in anguish. He struggles for air and I throw myself against my mental bonds even further so that I could at least tell him... I was sorry. That I loved him. That I hadn't meant for this to happen. So that he could know it wasn't my intention to betray his pure heart.

Out of his panting lips, he forces five words out, "This... is not.. your fault.." He gives me a half grin and inside my heart I scream at the sky and moon, knowing that he was reminding me of the promise we had only made moments before. His body drops to the ground, and ironically, it releases me from my own bonds as I begin to move again. I make my body crawl toward his motionless one, fingernails scraping on the rocks to just get closer. So that I could touch his warmth again. One more time...

"Chrom..." the first one comes out hardly a whisper as my breath starts to come back. It begins to come back as surely as his are leaving. "Chrom!" It comes with more urgency and tears start to well up as I move forward, not caring that my fingernails were cracking and splitting from the weight of my body. But my legs remain lifeless so I continue forward with only the strength of my fingers... those fingers... that held the spear of lightning... "Chrom! Please! Look at me!" I shriek, tears falling off my chin and dripping on the ground, creating a trail of souls, clear blood of a kind. His body continues to be stubbornly still and I move one last inch. "Chrom!"

My scream is stopped short as a lance pierces the ground cutting a few centimeters into my cheek and neck. I stop still and let the blood drip onto the ground as time continues to tick. I do not dare to look up because only one person would force a lance into the ground with such strength that the ground would tremble and still have deadly accuracy is...

I am pulled up roughly by my cloak but at this point, I cannot bring myself to care when the hood chokes out my air and my body cries out in protest at the brutal movements. Frederick looks at me with _venom. _It was certain that when I had first come as a tactician that I wasn't on friendly terms. But with time we had cultured a bond that ran deep and beyond that of simple comradeship. He and I had sat at many dinners in the open fields not only as brothers in arms but brothers in bond. How many times we had spent teaching, learning, and aiding one another both in the arts of war and in it. But now there was something that I had never seen before. Something that I probably would never _have _seen if I hadn't just kille-

"Robin. I will drag your godforsaken body back to the castle as a prisoner of war. You are tried for treason," he spits with rage, his fingers quivering as they held me from restraining from what I assumed was my own death. The brown eyes darken considerably with a livid anger I had never witnessed in the composed guardian of the Crown. "You are to be tried for killing Chrom the Exalt of Ylisse."

* * *

_What if I can't keep your promise?_


	4. Chapter 4

**_Hello all my fellow Ylissians! This is it. This is the last chapter. I'm sorry it took so long to get here. Before you read I just wanted to give a quick, short (probably not knowing me) summary of why I began this series. When I was nosing around on FF, I noticed many writers were retelling the story of FE:A which is completely fine since that is technically what I am doing too. However I was shocked to find that what wasn't being told was the story I've shared with you all over nearly the past year. To me what hits me hardest about FE:A is Robin's selflessness. Many may not realize that everything Robin had ever done was put aside his own fears for the sake of Ylisse and Chrom. The sheer agony Robin must have gone through when he killed Chrom has been portrayed to the best of my__ abili__ty__ in these words. In the real timeline, he probably didn't suffer nightmares of what he had done but night TERRORS at the gravity of what he had done to his lover. He feels as though he is a monster throughout his life and that may be something he never recovers from as he relives that day over and over again. So I just hope there will be other stories that write of how selfless and brave Robin is for deciding to challenge his fate even when he knows the suffering he will go through if he fails. Thank you all for reading. Turn on the angst music from FE:A and get ready for the beginning of the end. _**

**_Signing off, VolpeSky~_**

* * *

_Splash! "_Get up!"

The sunlight stings and burns as the albino slowly cracks open his eyes, struggling to keep his consciousness. The world continues to spin nauseatingly and he bites his lips to keep from emptying whatever he had left in his stomach. He breathes harshly as the ground continues to shift and stares at the dirt while trying to ease his screaming muscles, tied behind him to a pole. When he tries to move his arms, the rope burns hiss at him, digging into his wrists and reopening the newly scabbed wounds. He throws his head back against the pole before letting it fall forward again and then gasps for breath as he realizes with a growing despair that his wounds had dried onto the ropes and now would have to be torn back open to be detached.

A set of shining blue armor comes forward but Robin can hardly look up past the knees without nearly passing out from the sheer strength it took to look up. "I'll give you one last chance," the words come with a kind of spite and the tactician senses that Frederick can only _dream _of handing him more punishment. How could he blame the guardian though? His greatest friend and master had died at the hands of a comrade... a comrade he had been suspicious from the start but slowly built trust. Now it had all come crumbling down like a sad, sorry joke.

Robin grimaces and tries to command his knees to move, his feet to shift... anything. "I can't.. I'm sorr-"

_Wham! _

Robin clenches his teeth to keep from screaming and his vision tries to focus as he feels warm liquid drip to the ground. Panting softly, he tries to right himself, having been slammed to the side and awaits the next hit. Blood dribbles from his chin and he nearly laughs at how strangely_ human _that seemed.

"Don't you _ever _speak those words again. You're not worthy of being forgiven so don't apologize." The brunette hisses and Robin closes his eyes trying to hold onto the memories of composed, calm Frederick with his collected gaze and wise insight. A hand roughly grabs Robin's shirt and he shivers, as if just realizing how cold it was without his cloak. He doesn't even try to fight as he's yanked up like a rag doll and is forced to meet the intense gaze. "Ylissians have dignity so I'm saving your execution for after the trial. But heed me when I tell you I will avenge Chrom's death one way or another. I _never _should have trusted you, Child of Grima."

The brown orbs glisten for a second before Robin quickly shuts out the tears. Frederick was right. He _didn't _have a right to anything, much less cry over Chrom. In fact that name should have been the furthest thing from his mind. He stems the flow of emotions and memories that usually follow the name, halting them with a ferocity. _You are unworthy of even thinking his name. Don't look upon paintings of his face. Don't glance upon his casket. Don't... _

"Please! Let him down Frederick... He has not been taken to trial yet!" A gentle voice calls out as Frederick's fist begins to shake. "We do have dignity so we will treat him as we treat any other prisoner..."

The voice makes the albino cringe in pain and he shakes his head, begging for someone to stop her. _Please.. Princess Lissa... you... cannot... for your brother at least... don't look upon me... with the slightest shred of mercy. _He chokes back a sob and slaps himself back into composure. He couldn't cry.

Lissa approaches cautiously. Her green eyes flicker up nervously and she winces slightly at the slight of the broken body but steels herself and touches Frederick's arm lightly. "Please. He can hardly stay awake. We have to keep him alive for the trial. Let him ride on a horse. Walking is taking too large a toll on him." Frederick shakes his head and drops the limp body. Immediately Lissa crouches and wipes away the blood with her sleeve until Robin pulls his face away. She lifts the pale chin again, bringing water to his lips through a rag she had hidden behind her back. "Please... drink just a little. You have to live, Robin..."

_You have to take a silent oath that you will continue to live for me. _

Robin trembles but brings his lips to the cloth and suckles what little water was there to try and restore his strength. He pulls away though Lissa puts it back to his face, forcing him to drink more. He yanks away just as he hears Frederick and Lissa pulls back as well.

"You didn't get him to his feet."

Lissa starts to untie the knots and shakily replies, "I was just getting to that." She quickly releases the ropes and Robin's arms swing forward as he starts to fall forward. The princess quickly catches his shoulder and starts to help him to his feet.

Frederick pushes Lissa away and pulls up the tactician roughly by the elbow. "Stand!" He barks sharply as the magician struggles to find his footing. "Making my wife help you up, how low are you?" Robin nods his head at that and motions for Lissa to move away as he drags his feet forward in an attempt to make a step. The blonde starts to protest but Frederick quickly silences her with a glance before continuing, "You're to ride in the cart behind me. If you don't get there by the time we've finished cleaning up, you'll walk."

Lissa gasps and grabs Frederick's arm, "T-Thank you Frederick. Thank you..." Frederick pauses and gently takes her hand off of him shaking his head, "It wasn't for you," he murmurs. For a second, Robin dares to think there is sympathy in the voice but the brunette quickly walks away and he dismisses the thought, concentrating on reaching the cart though it was a mere twenty feet away.

_I can't keep your promise. But I will make sure too... by the end of the trial... I will be resting beneath the Earth._

* * *

Robin bumps along in the back of the cart, surprised that Frederick was making a point to avoid all the potholes and rocks until the guardian quietly muttered that it was for the sake of the cargo. The albino almost laughs at the irony that he is sitting in the back next to the falchion... Chrom's falchion. He makes it a point to etch ever groove of the sword into his mind to punish himself for what he has done, torturing himself with all the things he could never accomplish and never be to Chrom. The sky is a soft blue color and Robin takes in the sight for the last time, breathing all of its warmth in. _I love blue skies and its a shame to do much else than be with the person you love on these kinds of days._ This will be the last time... I see this kind of sky...

Suddenly the cart stops and Robin grits his teeth as he jerks forward, his ribs screeching their agony. Trying to regain his breath, he looks up and hears hoofbeats. _Ah so this was it... the party waiting to take him away to the dungeon. _He leans against the boards and awaits his imprisonment until someone shouts...

"Stop! Stop right there! Halt!"

"No way! I'm not stopping! You can't hold me back!"

The brown eyes widen in shock and Robin whips his head towards the noise, begging that this was not who he thought it was... it couldn't be... hadn't she heard the news... _Guess this is the beginning of your punishment. _The hoofbeats stop in front of Robin's cart and he tries to curl up, denying the fact that he'd have to stare into those blue orbs again... no.. he couldn't...

"Robin?"

Robin clenches his eyes shut and shakes his head.. _Please.. No anything but this... _Two padding footsteps approach the side of the cart and Frederick immediately starts to get off of his horse. But Lucina is faster, placing her small palm on the quivering back. "Robin.. It's me."

The albino clenches his fists even tighter, not even caring that blood was spilling from the cuts driven through by his mere nails "Lucina go." Frederick comes towards her until she calls out haltingly in a commanding voice. The brunette stops in his tracks but starts to move forward again until Lucina tells him once again using her name as the Exalt's daughter to stop him. She places her fingers gingerly on his back and notices the frayed ends and dirtied color. When they had left only a few months before his clothes had been tidy and clean. Now they were the mark... the mark of a prisoner...

"Robin... it's not true... the messengers are lying... right? Please... you kept our promise didn't you? You said you'd bring Daddy back... and now we're going to go ride horses..." Her voice cracks as the body remains unmoving, the silence giving her the answer she had denied for days. Even after seeing her mother cry and the servants mourn, she had told herself that it was all a miscommunications... a mistake. Mistakes like this happened didn't they? "Robin? Robin please... tell me for yourself..." She clenches the boards of the cart and screams, "Tell me the truth!"

Everyone looks away, unable to bring themselves to take the princess away yet cringing at the suffering the tactician was feeling. Although they were all shocked by the outcome of that battle... in way they all too had been denying the fact that this had ever occurred.. and now... everyone was being forced to face the brutal truth. Chrom was dead. He had been abruptly murdered by his best friend and... lover. Everyone in camp knew what was occurring behind the drawn tent flaps. It had been no secret that the two were close.. closer than most during several of their battles, moving like Sun and Moon on the battlefield. They were always perfectly in sync but now... truth be told it had been painful for some to see Robin suffer this way but what had been done couldn't be reversed.

Robin leans forward and clenches the falchion, shuffling slowly off the cart and not even bothering to wince at the pain as his feet hit the ground. He comes forward and then kneels in front of Lucina. His voice hoarse he whispers, "He'd want you to have this..."

The five-year-old looks at the bowing figure and starts to breathe sharply, her innocence splitting at the sight. "He... He? ... W-Who Robin.." She feels tears rushing down her face and screams, "WHO ROBIN! DADDY SAID HE'D GIVE ME THE SWORD HIMSELF ONE DAY!" As soon as the sentence ends, she falls to her knees and cries out at the sky. The perfectly pale blue sky. Robin quivers and looks to Frederick, who steps forward and picks up the princess. She screams and kicks, fighting him with so hard her crown falls to the floor and bounces on the ground. "You're all liars! I hate you all! You're lying! Daddy!"

_I. Can't. Keep. Your. Promise._

* * *

_This trial has found Robin, Child of Grima, to be guilty of the murder of Chrom, the Exalt of Ylisse. His sentence shall be a life term in prison. Meeting adjourned._

_NO!_

The albino gasps awake, throwing himself from the sheets and sitting up sharply. "No..." The darkness is deterred by small moonbeams from the window and the tactician forces himself to slow his breathing until his blood begins to flow at a regular pace and his heart stops pounding. The guard by the door stirs slightly and looks behind him at Robin but then faces forward again. "No..." he whispers again. He should have been sentenced to death. Out of mercy he had been allowed to live but it was a mistake... this was all a mistake...

Robin crawls to the prison door and begs the guard again, "Please.. please bring Frederick here... they have to change the ruling... please you've made a mistake by letting me live." The guard looks forward, as emotionless as usual and Robin slams his fist on the floor. They had stripped him of all his tomes and daily a cleric came by to cast a nullification spell on him to prevent any inkling of magic. Still... he knew... someday...he'd blast through the walls with enough magical power to bring the world to his knees. It was his duty to die.

He walks back to his bed and sits, not even bothering to lie back down. In his sleep he was the weakest and afraid something would happen to his mind. He could do this much and keep himself out of her grip. Yes. He looks around nervously as if he was expecting her to crawl through the window bars or come up the steps. He rubs the back of his hand nervously, itching and scratching at it again to draw more blood. But the mark would never fade. No matter how many times he peeled and tore at his skin, no matter how much it bled and scabbed over. It was always there. She was here. She was always here...

_Child, just because you are not asleep does not mean I cannot talk to you. _

Robin's breaths come fast and he slaps his palms over his ears, shaking his head and muttering, "Go away.. go away.. I will never become you... I will never gain your powers.. I won't.."

_We are one. As soon as Validar recovers his body we will join again. My sweet, sweet Robin... you are always to be mine. We will meet very very soon. _

"Stop! Hey! Stop it!"

Robin vaguely hears the squeaking of the cell door before he passes out into utter and sheer oblivion.

* * *

The dull, blank eyes slowly move their way up the armored body. He stares ahead without emotion until Frederick opens the door and walks into the cell. "I heard you choked yourself last night." Robin blinks and continues to stare straight forward, not even giving recognition of the man in his cell. "Well Robin? What happened?"

Robin forces his lips to move and whispers, "Kill me."

Frederick grabs Robin's shirt and slams him into the cell wall. "You think this is a joke?!" he spits out, seething through his teeth. "We let you live out of mercy and this is how you repay us? You should have died in the most gruesome way possible because you killed Chrom!" He slams Robin back into the wall who lets himself be jerked around. "You're pathetic."

For a minute the only sound is the eerie _drip-drop _of water somewhere far off onto the cold stone floor and Frederick's harsh breathing. Robin looks at him with a blank so vacant and doll-like, Frederick nearly drops him. "This is a mistake. Kill me," Robin replies in a ghostly, empty voice. "She's coming... she's coming." His eyes still look forward without direction or focus. "Kill me. It's dangerous. Kill me. She's coming."

"Who?" Frederick forces Robin's chin toward his direction so their eyes meet. "Why do you want to die? Who is coming?" But the albino merely breathes out the same words and looks on. The brunette growls and places Robin on his bed and stalks out of the cell. "Give him the necessary treatment." He looks back and then tightens his jaw, walking out.

* * *

The boot hells shuffle, click, and drag across the floor as Robin paces the room back and forth in an uneven and unrhymed pattern. He mutters underneath his breath and his eyes dart nervously, not even noticing when the guards begin to shout protests and stop an oncoming visitor. Only when they shout her name does Robin snap back into reality and pause his whisperings.

"Princess Lucina! You are not allowed to be here!"

"I'm the princess! Nobody can stop me from anything. Move!"

The white-haired prisoner's eyes widen and he backs away in his cell, struggling away from the door. A pale blue dress ripples by the door and Robin shuts his eyes tightly and blocks out all noise. _No. _

"Robin."

The tactician shakes his head violently and clenches his eyes shut tighter, not daring to open them. _No. I don't want to see you. You... you who holds the face of... _How many nights had he dreamt that this was all a nightmare and he had awakened in Chrom's arms. How many nights had he seen the king's smile and heard his laughter. How many nights had he seen that day... again... replayed in his mind with each finite detail. He couldn't face her. He was the one who had forced the King's hand into a forbidden relationship and the one who had turned against him. He couldn't...

"Robin..."

At the gentleness... _that _gentleness, he opens his eyes and gulps painful breathes as his chest continues to constrict and tighten. "Robin.. It's me." That line comes again and he refuses to fall for its trap again. He refuses to let himself fall endlessly into that gentleness until he would crash back into the ground at a speed so fast all that would be left of him were glass pieces of his heart. "Robin please come closer. It's alright." Robin covers his mouth and silently holds back his cries, shaking his head. He was going to fall into that chasm again and forced to be a prisoner to Love over and over again. When did the torture end?

"Robin, I'm sorry."

Robin collapses to the floor and screams his anguish, banging on the floor with his fists. _Even I will never be able to say those words so please... don't show me mercy. Don't show this tainted soul mercy. I am the child of Grima. I am destined to be your enemy. I killed your father. I am fated to be your worst nightmare. Don't dare to show me kindness! _"Lucina go away!" he shouts, summoning all the acridity into his voice.

"No. I can't leave like this!" Lucina clenches the bars and bites her lip. "Robin... I have come to beg your forgiveness. Because even if the whole world says that you are a murderer I know that you are good inside."

Robin scrapes his fingernails on the floor. _Please. You cannot be in this room. He would-_

"And I know if Daddy were here..." she forces down a sob, "I know he'd think that too..."

_You didn't even accomplish dying. If you cannot die then with the rest of your life you can pay. The least you could accomplish is to right what you are about to do. If you are fated to live then at least change the final outcome of what is about happen. You have that much of a duty to her... to him... to everyone who has showed you mercy. _

"Luci..." Robin murmurs, clenching his teeth at the last shred of innocence he was about to rip from this child. "Luci I am nothing less than what everyone calls me. I am a murderer. I am the child of Grima. I am fated to kill all of you." He looks down at his fingers and curses them, "I will kill you with these hands one day." Tears start to fall from his face but he continues, "I will kill you just as I killed Chrom." _I will murder you, who I love so dearly, one day as well. Even if you show me mercy, you are simply wasting your breath on a monster. _"So listen to me... it is your job to stop that... I am giving you the heaviest burden to bear. You must kill me. You must end this. There is a god... Naga..." He pauses as the memories of Chrom suddenly start to flow. He forces them back down, desperately attempting to stop the flow.

_I bet all of Naga there isn't anyone better suited for me than you, Robin._

"T-There's a god named Naga..."

_You think if we had children they'd have your white hair or my blue color? Maybe your hair color with blue eyes. That actually would look incredible._

"She... is merciful... and will... turn back time... for you..." The tears continue to fall quickly now. Why? Why now of all times... he had kept them away for so long...

_Love bites at the most unexpected of times. Doesn't it? I never would have thought it would happen this way but then again.. I couldn't imagine anyone other than you. _

Robin puts one hand to his face and sobs into it, struggling to keep his voice from leaking too much. _Stop. You have a duty. Stop hiding behind these memories... this won't change anything..._

"I miss him too..."

_I love you Robin._

The albino grits his teeth and the blue eyes stare back with sympathy. _I dare to say I still love you and now it is my turn to show you... how much you.. this world... means to me. I had never known anything this wonderful until you found me that day in that field. And now... I must show you how much you changed me._ "There is a god Naga... when I rise as Grima... she will awaken as well. She will allow time to change and you... you must go back and prevent history from repeating itself... you have to carry out what I couldn't... and stop this terrible destiny," _So that maybe in another life we may be together.. happy... and saved from this fate._

* * *

_The truth is after our meeting in that cell, Frederick kept me from seeing Robin ever again. I never got to ask him again what he meant by turning back time. So I couldn't do much else but train for the day Robin swore was fated to come. Nothing happened for the next twelve years. However I knew he was alive because during the night I'd hear terrible screams. And then... and then on my eighteenth birthday... it happened._

* * *

_Hya!_

The falchion shines as it slices through another Risen and the princess grits her teeth, struggling to pull it back out for another strike. The monster seems to laugh and continue to move as if nothing had happened. Lucina reels back on her heels and slices into the demon again, beheading it. This kind of gruesome killing was nearly making her desensitized to all death and yet when she saw the falling of her comrades it still struck every time. Just when she was beginning to believe that all her emotions had abandoned her, she is struck with another death toll of a friend. "Everyone! Protect the castle at all costs! The lives of refugees are at stake here!" Suddenly lightning strikes through the ceiling and the floor sets afire. The flames dance across the ground and lick at the boots of dead men already strewn across the ground. Lucina launches herself at a new group of Risen as if the fire wasn't all around her despite her growing tiredness and the suffocating smoke. With the Heavens and Fate laughing at her, what could she do but fight? _What had the world come to? _

"What are the casualties?" The princess murmurs as she leans against the wall and tries to bind her burned arm. "What about news from Yarne or Owain? Inigo even?" She hisses as the cold rag bites at her skin.

"They're dead, Princess..."

* * *

The monster screeches into the sky and lights the world afire with a deadly purple flame. Its eyes dance in the gleam with every death and atop the terrible monster sits the most painfully familiar face, commanding the beast. Its terrible wings flap and blow down whole forests. Lucina clenches her fingers around the handle hates the bitter sense of defeat. But it was coming. Pushing herself off the ground slowly, she drowns out all signals of pain with her sheer concentration. Though all around her, the smell of burning flesh and death stings her nose, she tries to rise. The ground is hot and angry and the Earth cries out at its imminent death. _The end is coming. _Lucina helps herself to her feet, teetering dangerously with her sword more like a cane than a weapon. This was her final stand. This was the end of it all. She takes in a huge breath and summons the rest of her power to scream. Scream her very last breath. If she was going to leave this world, it was going to be fearless.

* * *

_Child, your fate is simply too cruel. Now I give you the power to turn back time so that fate may be kinder to you. For if she refuses to change, you must force her unto your own will. Return, Child, to the past so that you may reach the future. You and your comrades can now grab destiny's tail and turn this around. I entrust this to you._

* * *

"Chrom we _have _to do something!"

"Well... what do you propose we do?"

"I...I don't know!"

The two faces smile and look in relief as my eyes open. The blue-haired man smiles down and looks at me curiously, "I see you're awake now." His voice is gentle and soft. Just as I remembered it. Just as I always remembered it. Just when I was beginning to forget it... it had come to me again.

The white-haired man grins at me, hands on his knees and cautiously murmurs, "Hey there.." And you... you too... just as happy.. and vibrant.. before that day...

Chrom laughs softly and gives me a kind of strange but amused grin, "There are better places to nap than on the ground you know. Gimme your hand." He offers his hand and I reach out for it trembling... _This isn't a dream... It's him... It's Father... After thirteen years... I finally have you before me and I can stop your death. We can end it... how I'd love to just spend the rest of my life here with you. _I take his palm hesitantly. He pulls me up easily and grins.

_"You came home... you finally came home."_


End file.
